Oluyinka Onigbinde
As the crisis rocking the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) lingers on, the National Executive Committee Members (NECOM) led by Mr Tony Iju Nwabunike and the factional Board of Trustees of the association led by Taiwo Mustapha, have disagreed as to when the tenure of the current NECOM will expire.
This is even as the two groups have argued over the legal standing of each other to remain in office. While the NECOM insist that the factional BoT has been expelled and has no moral standing to still be referred to as BoT, the factional BoT has also insisted that the present NECOM is on suspension and do not have the legal right to act in the capacity of NECOM.
The factional BoT has also insisted that the tenure of the current NECOM comes to an end in February 2022, describing the amendment of the constitution of ANLCA as illegal. The NECOM has also argued that following the amendment of ANLCA’s constitution at the last Annual General Meeting held in Owerri in 2020, it now has five years to stay in office instead of the four years as stipulated by the constitution before the amendment.
In a chat with our correspondent, the factional Chairman of the registered Board of Trustees (BOT) of the ANLCA, Alhaji Taiwo Mustapha said that the association is warming up for another election in February 2022 at the expiration of the tenure of the National Executive Committee (NECOM) led by Tony Nwabunike.
He described the amendment of the constitution of ANLCA as illegal, informing that the BoT which he chairs will be ready to conduct elections after the expiration of the NECOM’s four years in office.
According to him, “the association is warming up for another election in February 2022 at the expiration of the tenure of the court-suspended National Executive Committee (NECOM) led by Tony Iju.
“You can’t stand something for nothing. In the first-place, the amendment of the constitution of ANLCA was supposed to be done by a legally-constituted National Executive Committee (NEC), So, when a President and the National Executives that were already suspended called for NEC to amend the constitution, that is building illegally on top of illegality.
“So, they don’t have the mandate and the legal backing to amend any constitution. So, the issue of amending their own tenure with additional one year in their favour is null and void and it cannot stand. Election was held in February and under the calculation, the NECOM tenure is expected to end by February 2022. That is our position”, he said.
On his part the National Vice-President, ANLCA, Kayode Farinto also in a chat with our correspondent said the tenure of the NECOM of the association ends on 18th April 2023, insisting that the NECOM doesn’t end in February 2022 as said by the supposed registered Board of Trustee (BoT) members of the association
He further alleged that the tenure of Taiwo Mustapha as BoT chairman of the association has expired and since he has been expelled, he cannot hold any position or conduct election on behalf of the association.
He said the new BoT members of the association is headed by the Executive Vice- Chairman, Sifax group; Dr Taiwo Afolabi, and Prince Ozo Chukwura as the Vice- Chairman.
He described the factional BoT Chairman; Taiwo Mustapha and the suspended Western Zone’s coordinator of the association, Mr John Ofobike, and other members of the group as “Customs apologists, camp boys and fronts”.
He said: “I have been a member of ANLCA for over 20 years and I just heard about Taiwo Mustapha just six years ago after bribing his way through with N500, 000, now he’s rubbing shoulders with me.
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“He is a Customs’ apologist and cannot assassinate my character. He and members of his group are not members of the association anymore, because they have been expelled by the association.
You were there at Owerri, when amendment of our constitution was carried out where we agreed at single term tenure of five years for the NECOM beginning from our administration, a single term tenure of six years for the BoT and one term single tenure for the chapters’ executives, so the tenure of the executive members of the association expires 18th April, 2023.
“We agreed that the constitutional amendment begins from the tenure of Hon. Tony Iju hence, the present executive tenure ends on 18th April, 2023.
“Also, Mustapha cannot conduct elections in ANLCA, if I may ask, he wants to conduct elections as what? Because, he has been expelled from the association and ceased to be a member,” he stated.
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